dankoni
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Where to begin...
tl;dr? If you jump to the bottom, you can just check my blood test results, my current goals, and the options I'm weighing.
I just had a blood test yesterday, so my main reason for posting is to get some advice on what steps to take, but I suppose background info would be helpful. If you want to tl;dr, that's fine, as this might get lengthy. I will try to keep it as brief as possible.
Drug history:
- Started smoking cigarettes in early teen years and still do, but have recently lowered my cigarette use and I'm trying to ween down/quit.
- Currently prescribed to Adderall (started about 6 months ago), but thinking of changing to Focalin or nothing at all. I certainly need help with focus, but feel as though the Adderall is depleting my dopamine too much and possibly destroying what little muscle I have.
- Recklessly took DHEA on and off for the last 3 years or so. I shouldn't have started without a blood test and bounced around on the dosage too much. Weaned myself off for the third time about a month ago and used a maca supplement to help. I started taking it for light depression and loss of libido.
Physical Activity:
- I played sports actively until the age of 15. Basketball and baseball were my main sports, with a few years of soccer and football in there as well.
- Since the age of 15, I have barely engaged in much physical activity. I had a couple stints at gyms and working out at home, but nothing has really lasted.
Illness:
- In February of this year I got a terrible case of epididymitis, which progressed to epididymo-orchitis in the left testicle. Just when I was ready to start getting healthy and oozing with motivation, I was confined to bed rest and put on 2+ months of cipro (after Bactrim DS did nothing), which really wrecked the tendons in my feet and shoulders, not to mention messed with my head. At its worst, my tesitcle was swollen to about 3 times its normal size. When it finally got better, I started with light physical activity (which was actually a lot compared to when I was 40lbs heavier and bedridden), then the orchitis came back. I was put back on cipro and re-confined to bed rest. Spoke to a new urologist and stopped the cipro. At this point, it had been about 4-5 months since my epididymo-orchitis began. I also realized that the epididymo-orchitis coincided with my abruptly stopping DHEA. Because of this, I decided to go back to 50mg of DHEA once a day, due to it reportedly helping with the immune system and testicular function. The epididymo-orchitis finally seemed to be going away, although I still had pain after sex for a few months, but nothing like before.
Recent Events:
- About 1 month ago, I weaned off the DHEA again (carefully lowering my dose this time) and started taking a maca supplement to ease the transition. It seemed to work very well, as I had far fewer side effects from stopping DHEA than ever before. About 1-2 week ago, I noticed the affected left testicle was significantly smaller than the right. I believe this is atrophy due to the chronic epididymo-orchitis and possibly related to my years of stupid DHEA use. At my highest use, I would take 100mg in the morning and sometimes 50mg at night. That was a couple years ago and those levels we only for a relatively short time period.
- In the last month or so, I've noticed a creeping malaise and depression, couple with extreme lack in libido. I rarely have an issue getting/maintaining an erection, but the desire to have sex with my beautiful wife and ever masturbate is practically gone. It comes back once in a while, but my libido has never been this low. These symptoms coupled with the shrunken left testicle prompted me to research hormone imbalances and low testosterone, so yesterday I had a blood test. I was so depressed yesterday with no apparent cause related to the drug/withdrawal induced depression I've become accustomed to, so I took 100mg of DHEA yesterday and 50mg this morning. I don't want to, nor plan to keep it up, but I needed something to get me over the hump until I had my test results and could find a better path. One hour after I took the DHEA, I felt much better and took a long walk.
- Also in the last month, I've started eating better and resumed light physical activity. I dropped 35lbs, some of which seems to be muscle. I've also been dealing with crazy leg/foot pain and circulation issues in my feet. They are constantly either extremely cold or producing incredible pain.
So, that was probably too long, but I enjoy writing and want to get as much info in here as possible before I lose motivation again and go another month without seeking help. Also, I am currently without health insurance. Here is my current dietary/supplement regimen and my blood work from 10/23/13.
Morning:
- 750mg Raw Maca (6:1 concentrate from NOW)
- One B-Right (Jarrow Formulas)
- Sublingual B12
- 500mg Muscadine Grape Seed (nearly every day)
- 1500mg MSM to help with shoulder injury and tendon issues from the cipro (usually 4-5 mornings a week)
- 500mg Cordyceps mushroom extract. (I was taking Reishi mushroom extract too, but recently stopped. Thinking of starting again for immune system.)
- 1 generic excedrin for pain. I was taking two in the morning and many throughout the day. Also take ibuprofen or aleve at times, but trying to stop all NSAIDs as much as possible, due to possible liver/intestine damage.
- 50mg DHEA (today is my first morning taking it in about a month. I'd like to stop in favor of a better solution)
About 30-60 minutes later, I take 30mg generic Adderall IR.
30-60 minutes after the Adderall, I drink a protein shake from PlantFusion, made with almond/coconut milk. This change (I never really ate breakfast for most of my life), seems to be the major cause of my weight loss. My wife dropped about 20lbs since starting this routine as well.
At some point before my second Adderall, I usually have a banana or some almonds for a snack.
4-5 hours after my first Adderall, I take a second 30mg IR Adderall. Some days I take 15mg/15mg morning/afternoon. Typically on the weekend, I only take one 30mg Adderall, or none at all, to control tolerance and side effects. I never abuse it and I don't seem to have any withdrawal when I skip a day or lower my dose on the weekends.
PM/Dinner:
- I typically eat a healthy and balanced dinner, although pizza and chinese takeout occasionally shows up. Most nights, I cook something like chicken breast, with a salad or green beans. Very healthy compared to my past.
- Curcumin/Turmeric (Source Naturals or Viva Labs)
- Omega-3 EPA/DHA
- Calcium/D (recently started this again. Thinking of changing to just a Vit D supplement)
- Men's multivitamin
- Probiotic
- CoQ10
- Vitamin C
- l-tyrosine (About to start up again. Ran out, which might partly explain my recent perceived dopamine drop)
About an hour after dinner, I typically take about 6 tablespoons of psyllium husk fiber and 2-3 tablespoon of chia seeds. This all but cures my IBS symptoms and makes me regular for the first time in my life.
Sometimes I take something for sleep. Recently started with melatonin again after stopping for over a year. Ambien doesn't seem to work well for me.
Now, if you were kind enough to read that novel, here is my 12hr fasted blood work from 10/23/13:
CBC With Differential/Platelet:
WBC 13.6 *HIGH *
RBC 5.10
Hemoglobin 15.6
Hematocrit 45.1
MCV 88
MCH 30.6
MCHC 34.6
RDW 13.6
Platelets 339
Neutrophils 72%
Lymphs 22%
Monocytes 5%
Eos 1%
Basos 0%
Neutrophils (Absolute) 9.7 *HIGH*
Lymphs (Absolute) 3.0
Monocytes(Absolute) 0.7
Eos (Absolute) 0.1
Baso (Absolute) 0.0
Immature Granulocytes 0
Immature Grans (Abs) 0.0
Comp. Metabolic Panel:
Glucose, Serum 109 *HIGH*
BUN 12
Creatinine, Serum 0.86
eGFR If NonAfricn Am 115
eGFR If Africn Am 133
BUN/Creatinine Ratio 14
Sodium, Serum 141
Potassium, Serum 4.8
Chloride, Serum 106
Carbon Dioxide, Total 22
Calcium, Serum 10.0
Protein, Total, Serum 7.4
Albumin, Serum 4.8
Globulin, Total 2.6
A/G Ratio 1.8
Bilirubin, Total 0.3
Alkaline Phosphatase, S 56
AST (SGOT) 19
ALT (SGPT) 22
Hormone Panel: (I added the prolactin. Figured Bioavailable Testosterone should be next test)
Testosterone, Serum 356 *LOW?* (Not flagged on test, but seems low for the age of 32)
LH 6.5
FSH 12.6 *HIGH*
Prolactin 3.8 *LOW*
Estradiol 13.9
Roche ECLIA methodology
tl;dr -
My overall goals are to balance my hormones, aid my depression, increase motivation/focus (without Adderall), start actively working out (I'd like to turn these tits into pecks for the first time in my life), and boost my libido/erections.
Rx Options I'm looking into:
- TRT until my levels are higher and I can naturally sustain them through supplements and exercise
- The hCG, Toremifene citrate, clomid route to "fixing" my hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis
Supplement driven routes I'm researching:
- Bulk Maca
- Tribulus (extract/concentrate)
- Fenugreek
- DAA w/ PES Erase
- L-Dopa w/ P5P and EGCG
- Tongkat (extract/concentrate)
- Stinging Nettle Root Extract
- Bps EndoSurge (if it's a better choice than getting nettle/l-dopa individually)
- Fadogia Agrestis
Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you for taking the time to read.
tl;dr? If you jump to the bottom, you can just check my blood test results, my current goals, and the options I'm weighing.
I just had a blood test yesterday, so my main reason for posting is to get some advice on what steps to take, but I suppose background info would be helpful. If you want to tl;dr, that's fine, as this might get lengthy. I will try to keep it as brief as possible.
Drug history:
- Started smoking cigarettes in early teen years and still do, but have recently lowered my cigarette use and I'm trying to ween down/quit.
- Currently prescribed to Adderall (started about 6 months ago), but thinking of changing to Focalin or nothing at all. I certainly need help with focus, but feel as though the Adderall is depleting my dopamine too much and possibly destroying what little muscle I have.
- Recklessly took DHEA on and off for the last 3 years or so. I shouldn't have started without a blood test and bounced around on the dosage too much. Weaned myself off for the third time about a month ago and used a maca supplement to help. I started taking it for light depression and loss of libido.
Physical Activity:
- I played sports actively until the age of 15. Basketball and baseball were my main sports, with a few years of soccer and football in there as well.
- Since the age of 15, I have barely engaged in much physical activity. I had a couple stints at gyms and working out at home, but nothing has really lasted.
Illness:
- In February of this year I got a terrible case of epididymitis, which progressed to epididymo-orchitis in the left testicle. Just when I was ready to start getting healthy and oozing with motivation, I was confined to bed rest and put on 2+ months of cipro (after Bactrim DS did nothing), which really wrecked the tendons in my feet and shoulders, not to mention messed with my head. At its worst, my tesitcle was swollen to about 3 times its normal size. When it finally got better, I started with light physical activity (which was actually a lot compared to when I was 40lbs heavier and bedridden), then the orchitis came back. I was put back on cipro and re-confined to bed rest. Spoke to a new urologist and stopped the cipro. At this point, it had been about 4-5 months since my epididymo-orchitis began. I also realized that the epididymo-orchitis coincided with my abruptly stopping DHEA. Because of this, I decided to go back to 50mg of DHEA once a day, due to it reportedly helping with the immune system and testicular function. The epididymo-orchitis finally seemed to be going away, although I still had pain after sex for a few months, but nothing like before.
Recent Events:
- About 1 month ago, I weaned off the DHEA again (carefully lowering my dose this time) and started taking a maca supplement to ease the transition. It seemed to work very well, as I had far fewer side effects from stopping DHEA than ever before. About 1-2 week ago, I noticed the affected left testicle was significantly smaller than the right. I believe this is atrophy due to the chronic epididymo-orchitis and possibly related to my years of stupid DHEA use. At my highest use, I would take 100mg in the morning and sometimes 50mg at night. That was a couple years ago and those levels we only for a relatively short time period.
- In the last month or so, I've noticed a creeping malaise and depression, couple with extreme lack in libido. I rarely have an issue getting/maintaining an erection, but the desire to have sex with my beautiful wife and ever masturbate is practically gone. It comes back once in a while, but my libido has never been this low. These symptoms coupled with the shrunken left testicle prompted me to research hormone imbalances and low testosterone, so yesterday I had a blood test. I was so depressed yesterday with no apparent cause related to the drug/withdrawal induced depression I've become accustomed to, so I took 100mg of DHEA yesterday and 50mg this morning. I don't want to, nor plan to keep it up, but I needed something to get me over the hump until I had my test results and could find a better path. One hour after I took the DHEA, I felt much better and took a long walk.
- Also in the last month, I've started eating better and resumed light physical activity. I dropped 35lbs, some of which seems to be muscle. I've also been dealing with crazy leg/foot pain and circulation issues in my feet. They are constantly either extremely cold or producing incredible pain.
So, that was probably too long, but I enjoy writing and want to get as much info in here as possible before I lose motivation again and go another month without seeking help. Also, I am currently without health insurance. Here is my current dietary/supplement regimen and my blood work from 10/23/13.
Morning:
- 750mg Raw Maca (6:1 concentrate from NOW)
- One B-Right (Jarrow Formulas)
- Sublingual B12
- 500mg Muscadine Grape Seed (nearly every day)
- 1500mg MSM to help with shoulder injury and tendon issues from the cipro (usually 4-5 mornings a week)
- 500mg Cordyceps mushroom extract. (I was taking Reishi mushroom extract too, but recently stopped. Thinking of starting again for immune system.)
- 1 generic excedrin for pain. I was taking two in the morning and many throughout the day. Also take ibuprofen or aleve at times, but trying to stop all NSAIDs as much as possible, due to possible liver/intestine damage.
- 50mg DHEA (today is my first morning taking it in about a month. I'd like to stop in favor of a better solution)
About 30-60 minutes later, I take 30mg generic Adderall IR.
30-60 minutes after the Adderall, I drink a protein shake from PlantFusion, made with almond/coconut milk. This change (I never really ate breakfast for most of my life), seems to be the major cause of my weight loss. My wife dropped about 20lbs since starting this routine as well.
At some point before my second Adderall, I usually have a banana or some almonds for a snack.
4-5 hours after my first Adderall, I take a second 30mg IR Adderall. Some days I take 15mg/15mg morning/afternoon. Typically on the weekend, I only take one 30mg Adderall, or none at all, to control tolerance and side effects. I never abuse it and I don't seem to have any withdrawal when I skip a day or lower my dose on the weekends.
PM/Dinner:
- I typically eat a healthy and balanced dinner, although pizza and chinese takeout occasionally shows up. Most nights, I cook something like chicken breast, with a salad or green beans. Very healthy compared to my past.
- Curcumin/Turmeric (Source Naturals or Viva Labs)
- Omega-3 EPA/DHA
- Calcium/D (recently started this again. Thinking of changing to just a Vit D supplement)
- Men's multivitamin
- Probiotic
- CoQ10
- Vitamin C
- l-tyrosine (About to start up again. Ran out, which might partly explain my recent perceived dopamine drop)
About an hour after dinner, I typically take about 6 tablespoons of psyllium husk fiber and 2-3 tablespoon of chia seeds. This all but cures my IBS symptoms and makes me regular for the first time in my life.
Sometimes I take something for sleep. Recently started with melatonin again after stopping for over a year. Ambien doesn't seem to work well for me.
Now, if you were kind enough to read that novel, here is my 12hr fasted blood work from 10/23/13:
CBC With Differential/Platelet:
WBC 13.6 *HIGH *
RBC 5.10
Hemoglobin 15.6
Hematocrit 45.1
MCV 88
MCH 30.6
MCHC 34.6
RDW 13.6
Platelets 339
Neutrophils 72%
Lymphs 22%
Monocytes 5%
Eos 1%
Basos 0%
Neutrophils (Absolute) 9.7 *HIGH*
Lymphs (Absolute) 3.0
Monocytes(Absolute) 0.7
Eos (Absolute) 0.1
Baso (Absolute) 0.0
Immature Granulocytes 0
Immature Grans (Abs) 0.0
Comp. Metabolic Panel:
Glucose, Serum 109 *HIGH*
BUN 12
Creatinine, Serum 0.86
eGFR If NonAfricn Am 115
eGFR If Africn Am 133
BUN/Creatinine Ratio 14
Sodium, Serum 141
Potassium, Serum 4.8
Chloride, Serum 106
Carbon Dioxide, Total 22
Calcium, Serum 10.0
Protein, Total, Serum 7.4
Albumin, Serum 4.8
Globulin, Total 2.6
A/G Ratio 1.8
Bilirubin, Total 0.3
Alkaline Phosphatase, S 56
AST (SGOT) 19
ALT (SGPT) 22
Hormone Panel: (I added the prolactin. Figured Bioavailable Testosterone should be next test)
Testosterone, Serum 356 *LOW?* (Not flagged on test, but seems low for the age of 32)
LH 6.5
FSH 12.6 *HIGH*
Prolactin 3.8 *LOW*
Estradiol 13.9
Roche ECLIA methodology
tl;dr -
My overall goals are to balance my hormones, aid my depression, increase motivation/focus (without Adderall), start actively working out (I'd like to turn these tits into pecks for the first time in my life), and boost my libido/erections.
Rx Options I'm looking into:
- TRT until my levels are higher and I can naturally sustain them through supplements and exercise
- The hCG, Toremifene citrate, clomid route to "fixing" my hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis
Supplement driven routes I'm researching:
- Bulk Maca
- Tribulus (extract/concentrate)
- Fenugreek
- DAA w/ PES Erase
- L-Dopa w/ P5P and EGCG
- Tongkat (extract/concentrate)
- Stinging Nettle Root Extract
- Bps EndoSurge (if it's a better choice than getting nettle/l-dopa individually)
- Fadogia Agrestis
Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you for taking the time to read.
